Leeds v Cardiff

Leeds United vs Cardiff City Preview

Sunday afternoon features this upcoming clash between Leeds United and Cardiff City at Elland Road with this fixture perhaps being the first step towards a swift return to the Premier League for the hosts but in reality it could also turn out to be a tough opening game for Leeds United.

A heavy 4-1 defeat at home to Tottenham on the final day of last season only served to confirm Leeds' worst fears as they were sent crashing through the trap-door and down into the Championship for this new campaign and that loss became a seventh in Leeds United's final nine games of last term.

Following their relegation, Leeds United have ben involved in four pre-season friendlies and Daniel Farke's side didn't get off to the best of starts as they were handed defeats by Manchester United and Monaco respectively, both by 2-0 margins but recent matches have since seen Leeds make an improvement.

A 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest was followed by a 1-0 win against Hearts which will give the Yorkshire club a much-needed boost of morale prior to the start of this Championship campaign.

Interestingly, each of Leeds United's last four games have resulted in Under 2.5 goals.

Cardiff City narrowly avoided the trap-door themselves at the end of last season's Championship campaign as The Bluebirds found themselves just five points above the relegation zone in what was a worrying season for the Welsh club.

Back-to-back defeats to Huddersfield Town and Burnley did nothing to ease Cardiff's fans' heart-rate nor their prospects in battling against the drop but luckily for them, time ran out for any further damage to be inflicted upon Cardiff and they ultimately kept their Championship status intact.

Still, it was a warning shot for the visitors and having managed to capture just three wins out of their last 11 league matches in the English second tier, Cardiff City will be keen to avoid a repeat of last season's tense finish to the campaign this time around.

However, although Cardiff found league wins tough to come by in the latter stages of last season, they at least captured these three wins on the road which came in the form of victories collected at Blackpool, Watford and Rotherham United, and this may give The Bluebirds hope and belief that they can cause an early upset at Elland Road on Sunday afternoon.

Six of Cardiff City's last 10 away matches in the Championship resulted in Under 2.5 goals.

Leeds United v Cardiff City Verdict

Both Leeds United and Cardiff City produced disappointing finishes to their respective campaigns last time out and this upcoming encounter may not be a classic by any means as both teams struggle in front of goal.

Therefore, our main bet will be Under 2.5 goals @ 2.10

Other side bets worth considering:

Cardiff City win @ 8.00

Correct score: Cardiff City 1-0 @ 21.00